In the immortal words of Winston Wolfe from Pulp Fiction…

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The idea that Jason Isbell saved country music when his latest release Something More Than Free inched out Alan Jackson for the #1 spot on Billboard’s Country Albums chart has been offered as a discussion topic by cosmic songwriter and east Nashville sage Todd Snider. In a spirited missive via Facebook Wednesday (7-29) morning, Todd Snider said (however hyperbole-laden),

what ever country music has become
how ever much you dislike bro country

ITS IS NO LONGER
STANDING IN THE DOOR WAY
OR
BLOCKING UP THE HALLS

NO MORE CALLS
WE HAVE WINNERJASON ISBELL SAVED COUNTRY MUSIC
IN THE YEAR OF OUR LORD
2015
SO LET IT BE WRITTEN
SO LET IT BE DONE

AND NOW
ITS JUST LIKE YOKO ONO MADE JOHN SAY TO ALL OF US

THE WAR IS OVER IF YOU WANT IT

LET US REJOICE
IN PEACE
IN THE NAME OF BROCEPHUS
AMEN

So what does Saving Country Music think about this?

Above all else, how awesome is it to have the old version of Todd Snider back in our midst? Last time I checked in with him the mood was much more gloomy and he was talking in tones it would only be fair to characterize as leaning towards suicidal. It’s been a rough year or so for the songwriter, so it’s at least good to see him reprise his role as country music’s spiritual guru and court jester.

But as for Jason Isbell’s #1 album spot saving country music? I think that’s a little presumptive, or at least, premature. Is it a victory? By gosh it’s a huge one, at least for Jason Isbell fans, and fans of independent music. And I don’t want to be the one to pour cold water on the victory party here. But there are a few important distinctions to make about this #1, and it’s importance in the grand scheme of things that I think restrict it from being as significant as some may hope.

1. He Beat Alan Jackson To Do It

It’s very likely Alan may end up with the #1 spot on the Country Albums chart next week unless a rallying Ashley Monroe, Jason Isbell, or Sam Hunt knocks Jackson out of the top spot, but it’s not like Isbell went up against Luke Bryan or Jason Aldean and slayed a great country music menace. Yes, Isbell did beat albums from those artists too, but in its debut week, it was Alan Jackson’s Angels & Alcohol that is stuck with the consolation prize. And think about this: Alan Jackson is a 3-time CMA Entertainer of the Year winner who has sold more than 80 million records. This was a big feat for Isbell to say the least.

But like Al Gore in 2000, or “Dewey Defeats Truman” headlines, the Alan Jackson camp appears to be reluctant to concede the race, at least at this point, and is declaring their own #1 victory, and certain media outlets are helping them. Alan Jackson is still saying his tally of 45,361 albums sold is good for #1, even as Billboard has clearly stated in both text and online that it’s Jason Isbell’s victory.

But above all, if Alan Jackson had landed the #1, and Isbell had ended up #2, it wouldn’t have felt like some massive reversal of fortune for either Jason Isbell, Alan Jackson, or country music. Two deserving artists ended up on top, and country music is the overall victor.

2. Jason Isbell Isn’t Exactly “Country”

It would be pretty hypocritical for us to wag a negative finger at artists like Sam Hunt and Taylor Swift for hitting #1’s with non country albums, and at least not broach the elephant in the room with Isbell, which is that Jason really isn’t a true country artist per se. He’s a hell of a lot more country than Sam Hunt and Taylor Swift combined for sure, and Something More Than Free might be Isbell’s most country-sounding album yet. But it’s still just as much rock and folk, and that’s the reason Isbell hit #1 on those Billboard album charts as well.

And to be fair, wouldn’t you be a little peeved, whether you’re Alan Jackson fan or an artist on one of the other charts Isbell crested, that some undefinable Americana guy upstaged your opportunity to land a #1? This all once again reinforces the idea that Billboard needs an Americana chart.

In the end we’re all music fans first, and then our loyalties break down genre lines. And it’s better to see quality music, regardless of the flavor, hitting #1 on the charts. But when the same record claims the #1 spot in three separate genres, and it arguably doesn’t fit in any of them, there’s going to be some justified naysayers.

3. This Is Not The First Independent Country Album to Crest the #1 Spot in Country Music

In fact, it’s not even the second, or even the first album from Thirty Tigers. The distinction for being the first to upstage the mainstream party on the Billboard Country Albums charts actually goes to Blackberry Smoke, who pulled off the feat with their album Holding All The Roses released on February 10th of this year. Sure, it may have been a more symbolic victory since the record only shipped 19,000 units to earn the #1 (slow week for releases you see), but they are officially the Billboard Country Albums independent #1 pioneers. And lets not forget that Aaron Watson, who is one of the very original signees to Thirty Tigers (the same independent label as Isbell and many others), also hit #1 later in February when The Underdog sold over 26,000 units.

None of this makes Isbell’s success any less meaningful necessarily, especially since he sold many more albums to get his #1 and was going toe to toe with a country legend. But if the mark of when country music is saved is when an independent artist goes #1, then it’s worth noting that Isbell was not the first.

4. Let’s Face It, This Is Partly an Anomaly Based On Buying Patterns

I hate to sound like Bobby Bones, but you’re going to have a hard time convincing anyone that when considering the full breadth of an artist’s footprint, Jason Isbell is the biggest artist right now in all of country music. Don’t get me wrong, Isbell is on one hell of a roll, is selling out theater shows left and right, and obviously sold more records than anyone last week. But he’s still nowhere to be seen on country radio, not selling out stadiums or arenas like many mainstream acts, and is still a complete unknown to a lot of American society, including country music fans.

The reason Jason Isbell’s album went #1 is because independent fans buy their music, and mainstream fans stream it. It’s that simple. This has created an anomaly in the marketplace where independent artists in all genres are all of a sudden matching or beating their mainstream competition on album charts. It doesn’t mean that the #1 distinction doesn’t mean anything. A #1 still means quite a lot, and let’s not forget that Billboard tweaked their album charts recently to include streaming data to attempt to stem these very types of anomalies. But guess what, Isbell and others are still breaking through. But it wouldn’t be fair to not at least mention that the buying patterns of consumers are playing a significant role in what is playing out in album charts.

Why Charts Matter

If there’s any irony in this situation, it’s that Jason Isbell, Aaron Watson and Blackberry Smoke have proven why charts are a vitally important part of the musical landscape, even for independent artists, if not especially for them. Think of how many more industry people and run-of-the-mill fans now know the name Jason Isbell compared to how many knew it before. Include this with Zac Brown covering Isbell’s “Dress Blues” on Zac’s recent #1 album and all of a sudden Jason Isbell is right on the precipice of being considered a mainstream artist himself. For years independent fans bemoaned paying too much attention to charts because they were a product of the mainstream. I remember when Saving Country Music fought againstBillboard‘s integration of pop plays for country artists in 2012, and all the howls from independent fans about about why it was a fool’s errand to care.

But charts matter. There is now certifiable proof that music of substance is making substantial inroads into the mainstream. We can see it, measure it, and regardless of the points made above, there is no debating that Jason Isbell sold more records than anyone else in country, and that this is a huge accomplishment for independent music of substance.

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But did it save country music?

Women are still being grossly under-represented, depressing filth still dominates the radio and country’s award shows, and the bad guys are still making the majority of the money. But it is a foothold, it’s a foot in the door, and at least they now know we’re here and aren’t going away.

But as I’ve said many times, country music will never be saved. Or as soon as it is, it will immediately fall back to making the same mistakes that caused it to fail before. Saving country music is alchemy, and a an ongoing, ever long effort that will always be important to carry on to preserve the music of country people.

Besides, Todd Snider’s real point was that we should stop spending so much time bitching about what’s going on in country music and start celebrating victories. And on that hopefully we can all agree.

92 Comments

Fuzzy TwoShirts
July 30, 2015 @
8:13 am

Honestly, if Mr. Isbell could beat out the legendary ALAN FREAKING JACKSON for number one than Luke Bryan or FGL would fall over before him like a hobo wearing a green necktie. I’ve got “something more than free” on mail order and it should be here within the next few days.

“Something More Than Free” is an awesome album. The songwriting is smart and heartfelt. Isbell’s voice is gorgeous. The production and musicianship serve each of the songs. It’s a victory and a godsend for discerning music consumers — whether they’re country fans or not.

But here’s all I need to know about whether or not Isbell is crossing over into the mainstream. Here in central Iowa, whenever a Luke Bryan or an Eric Church comes to town, dozens of my friends buy tickets and go to the show. They take to social media to gush about how excited they are for the concert days in advance, and they post pictures of their concert-going experience on Facebook. The social media clamor whenever one of country music’s biggest stars comes to town is downright inescapable among my friends, who are mostly in their 20s and 30s. It’s become sort of a joke that my wife and I share.

On the other hand, I’ve seen precisely one friend post on Facebook about Jason Isbell’s new album. In rural Iowa, at least, country radio is still the king.

Not to sound arrogant but my assumption is you and your wife are a lot more mature than the other friends you speak of. I imagine you have grown a lot more in life. To get excited about a Luke Bryan concert is getting excited about partying. Nothing wrong with such but that is what it is. Someone getting excited about a big night out, going to a huge party and having a good time. People who want to go listen to an artist like Isbell, in my opinion, are going for different reasons…. to hear good music and enjoy true art.

Big Cat and Bobby, I appreciate what you’re both saying. The party mentality is definitely at play. I would guess that the experience — putting on some boots, having a few beers, joining the big crowd and taking in the stage production — is as much a draw as the music itself for most of my concert-going cohort. No question.

And Bobby, I play in a band as well. We don’t play any Isbell songs, but we’ve been known to play some Justin Townes Earle. And you’re right, there’s always someone singing along and dancing to ‘Harlem River Blues.’ But my guess — and it’s only that, definitely nothing scientific about my observations — is that the people who come to local shows and sing along to Isbell/Earle covers aren’t the people going to see Luke Bryan or Florida-Georgia Line at the big arenas. There’s a line in the sand, and I think that division is getting more pronounced.

One thing that I’m almost certain of, though, is that the folks I grew up with are far more likely to go to a big arena or state fair stage for a country music show than they are to an auditorium or local venue.

When Jason Isbell married Amanda Shires, Todd Snider performed the ceremony. So, a big part of this was simply a note of congratulations to a friend.

You’re right from your point of view. Country radio, large venues, and TV specials are filled with crap.

But, that’s not really what Todd’s talking about. In that post, he wrote about “no more excuses…no more midnight good time picking parties being ruined by the guy or girl who has to bring up how uncool pop country music has become.”

The point is Jason Isbell (and others) have “saved country music” by proving that you don’t have to be a part of the machine to be heard. Todd wrote about that in his book.

(and you’re saving it by promoting good stuff and calling out bad stuff)

Also, the fact that Jason Isbell can be classified as rock, folk, or Americana doesn’t take away from the fact that he is also country.

The pop-country crowd likes to hit back with their “evolve” argument. But, Jason Isbell is a perfect example of why that’s nonsense. He doesn’t sound like Hank Williams or Waylon Jennings. He doesn’t need to add a peddle-steel.

He tells the story of the working class, from ‘Outfit’ to ‘Something More Than Free,’ as good as anybody. That makes him country.

im in eastern Iowa and I agree whole heartedly with your assessment. Country radio is ridiculous here and honestly I don’t even put it on for background noise anymore. There’s one country station in town that plays Taylor swifts POP songs because they apparently just don’t know what to do with themselves now that she’s off country. Anyway, isbell is in Madison at the Olympic in November, I suggest getting your tickets early!

I met Todd recently. It was the Saturday morning after his near week-long “Occupy Cheatham Street” movement in April in San Marcos. I had attended the Friday night festivities and got a ride home from a friend. Upon my return to my vehicle that morning (my sister had graciously offered me a ride), I could see quite a few folks were already stirring. I had loaded up my dog and was rearranging my fishing poles when I saw him (Todd) ambling across the dusty parking lot. I waved and smiled. He waved and smiled back. As I was pulling out the drive, I rolled down my window to thank him for his delightful stories. He told me “way to get a ride home.”

Haha, nice story. I made it out for his Sat show and got there early to par take in Occupy Cheatham Street. It was a success, the cops came and blocked off the road and they played music in the street.

I take Todd’s statement two ways. First, as stated before, Todd and Jason are good friends and he’s just saying congrats to a bud. 2nd, if you follow Todd, you know that he is all about the music. So yes, his close friend made it number 1, but he’s also saying, we did it. We being the artist that does it the way they want. Todd has defiantly paid his dues and is a good figure for the cause.

Isbell isn’t going to change country music overnight and you can argue if he is truly a country artist, but we are starting to see a shift in the movement. With all of the independent or smaller artist making dents in the charts, this makes a pretty loud statement and a big FU to the Nashville Machine. And whats great about all these different artist that are knocking down the walls, they are all DIFFERENT. No cookie cutter crap that is being force fed to us.

I’ll mark this up as a huge victory for the cause. Will it save country music? Probably not but do we want it to? Do we want all these artist to get sucked up by the Machine? I don’t. The key here is change and its happening.

I love todd have probably seen him 50 times, own everything he has ever done and read the book. First of all i dont think he wrote this statement. Second Todd isnt really against mainstream stuff he talks in his book about how hard what Kenney Chesney does is and invites anyone who thinks its easy to give it a shot. This statement is both a congratulations to Jason and kinda a joke to go along with the Occupy tweets from San Marcos. Just my opinion.

I agree, I don’t think Todd put out that statement from what it shows on FB. I also agree that Todd isn’t against mainstream but against all the BS that comes along with mainstream. Mainstream doesn’t mean your a bad artist or you don’t have talent, it’s just a different ball game with a different set of rules. The one thing I respect about Todd is, his no BS attitude. I can’t say I agree with everything he says, but at the same time, its how he feels it makes him the unique person that he is. At the end of the day, he just wants to hear good music just like most of use. Whether it be country, rock, blues, you name it.

I think its incredible for Jason to have such a great opening week and speaks of the power that a lot of independent movement has right now. I think something that is so critical though is the weeks that follow, what is happening after that first week surge for a lot of these artists. Part of what impressed me so much with Sturgill’s last album was that is sold only 5,500 copies the first week and has eventually went on to sale over 140,000. That is a huge percentage number from start to current total. You could just see the momentum building week to week and it is what kept him in the top 10 for so long, which was incredible. Jason is an extraordinary artist, however in the country discussion, he isn’t exactly what we would call country. In his defense though, his folk style falls quite a bit under the country column when you look at the current billboard categories. When it comes to saving country music though, I don’t think it will be an artist like Isbell that swings the momentum, it will have to be someone more like Sturgill that has a style of music that almost sounds like a locomotive coming down the track. A sound that is going to literally kick the door in and make true country cool again.

If you TELL the mainstream minions about this #1 status ( that is …if RADIO itself was breaking this news to its listeners,) many would want to be part of the however short-lived perception that Isbell is hip and trendy and they’d buy and support him . BUT the fact is , his lyrics are not for the mainstream minions at all and once the MM catch on to that fact ,his cache with them will evaporate . Unfortunately ,Jason will then have a choice to make . Water it down ( a la Zac Brown’s Homegrown ) or live with his artistic choices as his mainstream popularity then wanes ( a la Zac Brown ) .It doesn’t take a crystal ball to see this. It happens over and over again IF AN ARTIST LETS IT .Jason hasn’t changed country music at all . He’s an Americana artist who’s gaining a foothold in some camps . His lyrics and music won’t sell cars , vacation deals or housing renos on commercial radio and , although I haven’t seen his ass or tats I’m certain he won’t be competing with the Kruise Kids or Aldean on that front either . Thank God .

This has been coming. Look at Elektra aligning with Dave Cobb, Sturgill with Atlantic and so on. There is a movement by the labels to hedge their exposure as artist like these gain ground. Honestly I don’t want ‘country’ music to be saved. I want badass artist like Isbell to stay the way they are today.

Jason cant save it by him self but his generation (not age but you know what I mean) can. Jason, Sturgill, Kacy, Brandy, etc they can save it. One person cant change whats going on right now but the right mix can. That mix must include females. This is a just part of the trend that is saving county. Aaronn Watson landing at #1 is part that is saving it. Sturgill’s next album will likely sell more copies than isbells just sold in its first week. That will help save it.

I’m led to believe it’s not how you start that’s the most important, but how you finish.

And don’t get me wrong. A #1 opening with 46,000 copies sold in your opening week with the only airplay you’re receiving whatsoever being scant Triple A airplay IS quite impressive itself.

But what impresses me vastly more goes along the lines of what Eric Church said recently: “Everybody gets so amped up about that first week number, but I even said then that I’m more concerned with week 100 than I am week one, because you want a record to have longevity.”

And that’s what has separated massive success stories like Jamey Johnson’s “That Lonesome Song” and Sturgill Simpson’s “Metamodern Sounds in Country Music” from, say, Blackberry Smoke’s “Holding All The Roses”. “That Lonesome Song” debuted at #6 on the Top Country Albums chart, but went onto set an incredible pace and eventually go Platinum. Blackberry Smoke’s album, comparatively, is still successful in its own right, but its hype appears a lot more frontloaded and we’ve also seen the same with Aaron Watson.

I think Jason Isbell’s record is more likely to have a Jamey Johnson-esque run, however. I’m not sure he has enough reach to enchant numerous award show circuits like Kacey Musgraves, and thus will likely fall short of getting his first Gold album. But I do think “Something More Than Free” is going to have chart legs that more closely resemble “That Lonesome Song” than “Holding All The Roses” or “The Underdog”.

Just for perspective, I can’t get my head around why major labels (along with a few established independent labels, actually) are so stubborn about seeing to it their respective “country” singles they’re pushing make it to the top of the charts…………..at the expense of their parent albums.

Here are some recent examples:

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1) Canaan Smith”™s “Love You Like That” (dishonestly) topped both the Billboard and Mediabase charts after 50 weeks”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦yet his respective album “Bronco” debuted at #4 on the Hot Country Albums chart with 12,000 units shifted.

2) Kelsea Ballerini’s “Love Me Like You Mean It” topped Billboard’s Hot Country Airplay chart in its 34th week, yet her debut album “The First Time” debuted at #4 on the Hot Country Albums chart with 13,400 units shifted (despite an endorsement from Taylor Swift).

3) Easton Corbin”™s “Baby Be My Love Song” peaked at #3 on Billboard”™s Hot Country Airplay chart after 40 weeks, yet his newest album “About To Get Real” (despite being enough for #1 that week) shifted 20,000 units: a 1/3 decline from its predecessor.

4) Gloriana”™s “Trouble” (which sold terribly to begin with) was nonetheless pushed for 31 weeks on the Billboard Hot Country Airplay chart before peaking at #24, yet their respective album “Three” shifted 4,500 copies in its opening week.

5) Chase Bryant”™s “Take It On Back” spent 30 weeks on the Billboard Hot Country Airplay chart (including “On The Verge” treatment at the beginning of its chart run, mind you), peaked at #9”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦”¦and his debut album has yet to be released.

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These examples exemplify why labels should summon the will to swallow their pride and pull the plug on underperforming singles more often.

I’ve gotten into heated arguments when I’ve argued Dot Records should have pulled the plug on Maddie & Tae’s “Fly” back in early June and released a new up-tempo song like “Sierra” for immediate airplay. Why? Because there’s absolutely no passion toward this song as reflected in both listener callout surveys and digital sales. It is synonymous to “Meh!” and it is a disaster waiting to happen to have your debut album anchored off of a song that screams indifference to listeners. I’m expecting a soft opening for Maddie & Tae’s “Start Here” in result, unfortunately.

Also, if I had my druthers, I can honestly say I would have pulled the plug on Dustin Lynch”™s “Hell of a Night” as many as three months ago. Brad Paisley”™s “Crushin”™ It” would have been pulled on my behalf around Memorial Day. Chase Rice”™s “Gonna Wanna Tonight” has absolutely NO business being on the chart and I probably would have cut it as far back as February. Big & Rich”™s “Run Away With You” and Kip Moore”™s “I”™m To Blame” would have also already gotten the axe by now.

To your point , you reference at least half a dozen songs in your post , Nadia , that , to my knowledge , have never even seen the light of day on Vancouver mainstream country radio .In fact , I’d never even heard of them myself . Yes , its true that we play a few less ” foreign” releases due to our Cancon 30% law ….but it seems that an awful lot of stuff may just be falling through the cracks .

All those songs should have been pulled or never been on the radio in the first place. “Crushin It” is one of the most annoying songs I have ever heard. Though it is terrible, there are far worse songs in general, but there is something about that song that is just annoying. The video is awful too. It is a bigger circle jerk than Aldean’s 1994. Little Big Town is somehow a guardian of country music’s history and tradition? Bah!

I admittedly went off on a tangent there, and I suppose I felt the need to point this out to make the point about the importance of having a long view in the industry as opposed to putting all your eggs in one basket that is airplay.

Here, Jason Isbell has outsold both Kelsea Ballerini and Canaan Smith by over a three-to-one margin with not even 1/10000th of the airplay they have received. Isbell has outsold Gloriana by a ten-to-one margin. And I’m predicting the opening week sales for Maddie & Tae’s “Start Here” will fail to match up to those of Isbell’s, despite having a #1 hit to their name, because of the weak sales and all-out indifference surrounding their current single “Fly”.

I appreciate your perspective, Nadia, and I agree with you that an album that debuts at #25 then reaches #1 in its 10th week is a bigger success story than one that debuts at #1 then drops 5+ places every week after that.

Something I don’t think we’ve discussed yet is the importance of preorders. I rarely preorder albums, but I DID preorder Isbell’s new record for two reasons: First, Amazon was offering it for $8, and I figured if it was a hit then I’d have to wait a couple of years for another chance to get it so inexpensively. Second, I knew that people on this blog and elsewhere would have a lot to say about the Isbell album right after it debuted, and I didn’t want to be left out. I’m a much bigger Jackson than Isbell fan, but I probably won’t pick up a copy of the Jackson album for another couple of weeks. I know people will still be talking about him then.

Technologies like Twitter and Netflix, the latter of which lets us binge whole TV series all at once, have created a culture of novelty. What was new last week is so old it isn’t worth talking about tomorrow. How the shift affects the music industry is a big question, but I do think it helps explains why albums like ‘Pageant Material’ and probably Isbell’s ‘Something More than Free’ dominate the charts and conversations for such short windows of time.

I can see “Something More Than Free” and “Pageant Material” resurface in water cooler conversations in the coming weeks and months ahead, and prove to be pacesetters on the charts, if they are able to garner a host of award show nominations.

It’s all but certain Isbell isn’t going to get any love from either the CMAs or the ACMs. Musgraves certainly has a better chance, but she’s going to be the underdog in the Female Vocalist of the Year and, possibly, Best Album categories (I expect her to be snubbed from the Single/Song of the Year categories entirely).

However, I can certainly see both Isbell and Musgraves landing a small handful of Grammy nominations. I actually am predicting that Isbell will likely get a nomination for Best Country Album as well as a Best Country Song nomination for “24 Frames”. Kacey Musgraves will also likely get a nomination for Best Country Album as well as a nomination for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals with Willie Nelson for “Are You Sure?”

I have to say I can see both of them emerging with good odds. The Zac Brown Band are probably going to be the biggest wild card this go-around. I say that because they are fresh off of a Best Country Album win with “Uncaged” and are enjoying quite a successful era so far with “JEKYLL + HYDE”. On the other hand, however, it is critically their least popular album to date (it has a 56 score on Mediabase) and their unfocused medley of sounds runs the risk of splitting the Academy when the voting happens.

I can see the Zac Brown Band still having enough clout to play the role of spoiler, due to mostly weak competition otherwise. “Girl Crush” will definitely be a favorite to snag the Best Country Song award, but I don’t think it will necessary translate to Little Big Town also having the clout to clean up other award categories. Indeed, “Pain Killer” had a pretty ugly opening week commercially and plunged straight from there down the chart……………and it didn’t rebound until “Girl Crush” became the breakout top-selling country/”country” single of 2015 thus far.

Regarding the Alan Jackson total, that’s just a press release that was sent out by his label Monday morning (when the data showed Jackson with a 45K – 40K victory). The label retracted the press release once Billboard issued its revised report, but it apparently wasn’t removed from the actual Alan Jackson website.

It’s sort of tacky not to remove from AJ’s site, but this is more a case of laziness than them trying to dispute Billboard’s data (the fact that UMG removed the press release confirms they know he lost).

I’m also fine keeping it out there, as there needs to be evidence of the fact that Nielsen and Billboard have screwed up sales totals for THREE STRAIGHT WEEKS.

Well said Trigger. I have nothing against Jason Isbell, but I’m not on the bandwagon. Saw him relatively recently on Letterman and turned it off halfway, it was so boring. It’s “Americana” (again whatever that is). It was certainly not country by my know-it-when-I-hear-it definition (yeah I know). I was hugely impressed when he backed up Justin Townes on the same show playing Harlem River Blues, possibly the best music segment I’ve ever seen on Letterman. Congrats to him, but no he has not saved country music. So far, imo (got I hate using that) no one has, even Sturgill, whom I booked years before he “made it.” Kacey is the closest, but I was a bit disappointed that there wasn’t something a bit deeper in her latest, lyric-wise; one cannot ignore the last true revolution in country songwriting, now almost ancient history (god I’m getting old), in the early seventies with Kris (no. 1) and Willie, Newbury, then Prine and all the rest back then. The true country artist that should have made it big on his own to come out of Drive By Truckers is Mike Cooley. Paragraph. I just came back from rural Wisconsin, and had a heated but friendly “discussion” with someone at dinner who lives “in the deep Midwest” about country. He loves all that current shit; so as usual with these people, I go to, “but you like Merle, right?” No, he said. There was no convincing him anything in history was better than Florida Georgia Line, etc. It’s scary out there. But as your conclusion points out, there are signs of hope.

True, but these Nashville numbskulls have had their brains deteriorated by drum machines and synthesizers for so long that they don’t know what country music is. They couldn’t tell you the difference between Jason Isbell and Hank Williams Sr. if Hank’s ghost showed up in a nudey suit and sang “Cold Cold Heart” while mooning them and simultaneously flipping them the bird with both hands. Or at least they hope no one else could.

I’d have to agree, Clint. Despite my endorsements of Isbell to you and the impression that he at least has SOME country cred, he’s not “saving” anything for us, with the exception of quality music in general. Led Zeppelin dabbled in folk and roots rock; they were/are all talented, authentic, entertaining, great plagiarists of great songwriters, and soulful performers. But that doesn’t make them country.

In other but related news, Alabama announced that they are releasing a new record in September. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they said it would “update” their sound to the modern template. Honestly, I’m surprised Trigger hasn’t covered this yet (though it might very well be in his pipeline). I know he and some others aren’t as high on Alabama as a lot of listeners, but they hold a lot of water. They’ve sold over 75 million records worldwide. While they certainly won’t recapture the same appeal that they once had and will likely not get played on radio any more than Garth Brooks’ recent music was, but this is looking to be one of the hardest sellouts that we’re likely to see. Sure, they brought *NSYNC to the CMAs, but I think that was somewhat forgivable if extremely misguided. It didn’t completely change the band like this new record is sounding like it will.

Maybe, but that same article also suggests they’re keeping at least one ankle planted in their wheelhouse.

I know Jeff Cook mentioned that the album will sound a little different to those who’ve followed classic Alabama. But the article’s writer Chris Parton also mentioned that the lead single, “Wasn’t Through Loving You”, can fit on any classic Alabama album.

In truth, none of the titles mentioned seem to imply pandering to bro-country and/or metro-bro tropes and stereotypes. They have a song about agrarian life in the can as well as a song with Alison Krauss.

We’ll just have to wait and see. I’ve never been all that fond of Alabama myself, as much as I respect all they’ve achieved.

Yeah, Alabama has always kind of rode the fence between Pop-Rock and Country. Only one single in their entire career could be considered traditional Honky-Tonk.

I believe the reason their music ever sounded country at all, is because they were all real country boys in their upbringings. A country style is natural for them, despite the fact that they were heavily influenced by Motown, Doo-Wop, and Rock N Roll.

I saw Jason Isbell at the Shaky Boots Fest in Atlanta earlier this summer. He made it a point to tell the crowd he was going to watch Dwight Yoakam after is set. That makes him pretty country in my book..

If Tony Bennett attended the Yoakum concert, would that make him country, too? I don’t think anyone here would say that Isbell doesn’t have a right to claim a country background or that he doesn’t have decent taste in country music. (Even Sam Hunt is country by these standards.) What matters is whether Isbell’s songs sound country. I mostly like them, but they don’t.

I have a feeling you were responding to Clint, but I’ll take it upon myself to rebut.

What is a door? A door is a portal through which a person enters a dwelling or place of business, designed and intended for such. I can come through a hole in the ceiling all I want, but that will never make it a door. The same holds true for not just country music, but all forms of music. An SDP40 locomotive is not, cannot be, and should not be called an F40 locomotive. Alternatively, if you referred to a dog’s tail as it’s leg, how many legs would it have? It would have four legs. You can call a tail a leg all you want, it’s still a tail. Country music has one definition, and anything that doesn’t fit said definition is not country music. Evolution is fine and dandy, but you wouldn’t want to go to a Charlie’s Chicken to get a catfish dinner just have a cherry pie plopped down in front of you because “catfish dinner has to evolve.”

Fair point, and good perspective. But, there is something to be said about only allowing an artist to chart in one, or maybe two genres. Three seems a little excessive to me. Give that opportunity for a place in the spotlight for another artist.

I’m not an expert on this, but from my understanding there’s two factors. The first is the ISRC data an artist or label fills out when they submit the album for sales tracking. IN that process, you can list a genre, or multiple genres if you wish. Also specifically to Billboard, each chart has a manager who decides what should and shouldn’t go on the chart. In Isbell’s case, they decided his music was varied enough to be included on three separate charts. If I had a guess, I would say it was a combination of these two factors that ended with his album on three charts.

First congratulations to Jason Isbell for his number 1 album. Very well deserved and his hard work shows on the album. I love the song “Something More Than Free”. But I came here to make another point if you want to show the Mainstream your true feelings i urge you on Aug 7th when Luke Bryan’s new album comes out please oh please show your support buy buying Jason Isbell or make a stronger statement for women in music and buy Lindi Ortega’s new album Faded Gloryville. buying doing so you show strength in women and true artistry. Not drum machines and recycled lyrics of bro country.

I’m not understanding the methology of Jason slipping in at #1. I’m looking at this weeks’ Soundscan (released Mon 27 for w/e 07/23): it clearly shows Jackson at 1 with 46k & Isbell at 2 with 39k. How do you come by your stats?

They are not my stats. They are Billboard’s. Billboard uses Mediabase to aggregate its chart ratings. Soundscan is very similar to Mediabase, but they pull their data in different ways. Please don’t ask me to explain further, because I really am not a super expert on the subject. What I do know is that by Billboard’s calculations, Jason Isbell sold more albums. If Soundscan is saying something different, I wouldn’t be surprised because it was neck and neck in sales up till the very end.

Billboard uses Nielsen Soundscan. I’m not sure what the deal is here it might be a different tracking period or it could be that the outlets reporting to Soundscan and Mediabase lead to slightly different totals.

Also what needs to be remembered is the Top Country Album chart is just that it is actual album sales or equivalents meaning if you purchase a certain amount of individual tracks then that bulk gets converted into one album purchase.

Then of course the Billboard 200 has now been changed to some bastardized combination of album sales and streams so it could be possible for the order to be different on the Country Album chart as opposed to the big all genre chart.

It’s so complex and confusing but usually these things aren’t so close so it is more clear cut.

Personally I feel like Todd Snider’s original words, which brought on this article, are starting to spin out of control. I don’t think Todd was saying Jason is the best songwriter out there, or even that he’s “country.” An independent artist just scored a Billboard #1 album without any help from the big Cumulus or Clear Channel stations, or without resorting to writing songs about trucks, rapping, EDM beats, etc… I think what Todd meant was this proves that the little guy now stands a chance. He could also have been tripping his nuts off when he wrote it. Either way, reason to celebrate as I see it, like Isbell or not.

After comments Snider has made I’m surprised anyone cares what the has to say.

“I think human beings are awful ”” we turn into a tornado and ruin everything,” he says. “I don’t care for democracy, I don’t care for the American system. This lie that everybody has a chance to win. The truth is, there is zero motivation for somebody to succeed in this country. America is not designed for everyone to succeed. It’s designed from its core to be full of losers.

“This has never been a free country, it has never been a positive place, it’s never been a non-war driven country at any time.

I am not going to sit here and try and defend those comments. At the time Todd said those things, it was pretty clear he was going through a very, very difficult time. Frankly I don’t agree with a lot of the stances Todd has taken over the years, even when he’s right of mind. But that is Todd Snider. He’s a polarizing guy who will say some things off script. Not trying to justify it, but that’s who he is. Whenever you start talking politics as a musician, you run the risk of alienating huge swaths of people, and if you feel alienated, I totally understand.

Thanks for the reply, and the understanding. I think he is a great songwriter, love his stories, bought his book. I had just found that interview the day before, and was reading about some shows that had trouble. It was still very raw. I was harsh in my comment, I was frustrated,and disappointed to say the least. Thanks for giving a place to vent.

A old man told me once never make a hero out of someone living. We all have feet of clay.
I want to thank you for this site, and the hours you spend on it. Also thank you for letting an old fool like me have a voice.

Country music doesn’t need to be saved. And even if it did, Jason Isbell is not the one to do it.

Country music is alive and well across the United States. However, country radio needs to be blown up and rebuilt from scratch. And I guess country radio is what we’re mostly talking about here. Hell, I can put on my 80’s hair band playlist and hear stuff 10x more country sounding than what I can hear on country radio today (not that it IS country, just more country sounding).

As I write this I am listening to an artist that even most SCM readers don’t know exists. More Americana than country, but a helluva lot more country than radio. (Kate Lynne Logan, if anybody cares.)

The stuff featured on this site alone proves that country music is alive and well. Just not on the airwaves. The best I can do is support the good stuff, by paying for it and promoting it.

I will say that 2015 has had some badass album releases and hopefully sturgill will put out a new album by the end of the year which will only add to the greats. Things are definitely looking up a lot more than they have in recent years that’s for sure. As for Jason’s new album I have to say it was badass. Usually when I listen to his albums so have to listen to listen a few times to really appreciate his work and songwriting. I’ve had his album for about 2 weeks now and its still on repeat in my car.

Regardless of if Alan Jackson or Jason isbell went #1 both are awesome albums. Did it save country? No I think some people are prematurely ejaculating and somebody is gonna end up pregnant…. But it’s still amazing!

I just have to say Sam Hunt is trash. I’d rather hear meek mill’s latest vomit inducing diss track to drake on country radio than Sam hunt going #1 on the AirPlay chart.

Ezekiel 25:17. “The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness, for he is truly his brother’s keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy My brothers. And you will know I am the Lord when I lay My vengeance upon you.”

The truth is we are the weak. Music row is the tyranny of evil men. And Jason Isbell is tryin’ real hard to be the shepherd.

That is some cold-blooded shit.

Now you ain’t got no problem, Trigger. We’re on the motherfucker. Go back out there, chill the fuck out and wait for Sturgill Simpson who should be coming directly.

I don’t believe that charts matter. Black Sabbath had a #1 with “13” but Spokane’s radio station won’t play any of it. Congrats to Isbell, but I think this is just more of a sign of how awful the times we live in are. Really good music has cult followings of music lovers and these people respect the artists enough to buy albums/songs. But then they slide back down the charts extremely fast. And 45,000 albums sold is pathetic for a number one. It’d be like someone winning a batting title with a .280 avg.

I agree the numbers are pretty low historically, but as #1’s go these days, 46,000 is actually not bad at all. The #1’s for Blackberry Smoke and Aaron Watson felt a little hollow. The sales here are quite impressive however you look at it, even if he’d not attained the #1.

I guess that’d be the “glass is half full” viewpoint… Nonetheless, it’s great that another decent artist is getting some recognition. I just don’t expect it to mean that when I turn on the radio I am gonna all of the sudden be hearing good songs. It doesn’t even mean there will be a station in every market that will play Isbell – certainly not during daylight hours. But, then again, every little bit helps.

Country radio and mainstream country, like Trigger said, cannot be saved. But country music itself is being saved every single day. Every post on this website, every Isbell album purchased or Simpson or anyone else promoted here, every concert attended, saves country music. It’s all being preserved right here, just like the title of the website says. Sure it’s unfortunate that we can’t have a radio station pushing this stuff. But I’m just glad we have a platform that does!

I didn’t say that country radio and mainstream radio can’t be saved. I think the can be, or at least improve. But as soon as they are saved, they would immediately begin reverting back to the same old mistakes.

I understand that, and I hope mainstream country does improve. I think we’re watching that happen somewhat on pop radio. But when you say they would immediately make the same mistakes, by that logic, it’s pointless to even try and save anything, which I don’t believe is what’s happening here. I was trying to say that even if mainstream country is not improved upon, this site has still succeeded in keeping actual country music alive.

Exactly. If I had read this first I wouldn’t have responded above. I actually believe that music, for the listener is better today than ever before. I think that underground quality of albums is far superior to big label quality, song for song. This is an excellent time for music fans – just not necessarily for the live music side of it unless you live in the right city or region.

Assuming the daily task of “Saving Country Music “ calls for daily doses of megalomania. No such “saving” needed. Times and trends come and go. A few decades B.C. (Before Christ), Roman philosopher Cicero wrote: “Times are bad. Children no longer obey their parents, and everyone is writing a book.” Trigger could’ve raised the same alarm last week and enough whining pessimists would find it enlightening and shake their heads with concern.

Going back and catching up but I think the press for him is immeasurable in doing this. Half the blogs carried it and many folks shared the articles. I posted about it as much as I could. I have some other press folks on my friends list, will rarely post about non mainstream stuff. They live in Nashville. No idea if they don’t want to feed the machine or whatever. They have to notice though.
Would have to go back to blog posts or live shows of Aaron Watson in concert but even before on his previous album “real good time” he had made the top 10. He has told the story in concert of how a guy from USA today (not Brian Mansfield) and a guy from billboard called him for interviews. Quite frankly they said congratulations but how is it a guy like you whom I have never heard of can do this? They were perplexed like it’s an anomaly. Even in their job they don’t venture out enough to go outside the box.
It’s the best time in history to be an independent musician. If your goal isn’t to be on radio. Can make an album of music that’s fairly good quality for $10k or so. Can break even at 1,000 units. After that it’s all profit. One of our local bands has sold about 12,000 units that way. Are they rich? No, but can make a healthy living in subsidizing other stuff.

Jason Aldean was on the Today show a few days ago and after hearing him, I have come to realize that the ears are part of the human olfactory system; you can actually hear stink coming from a speaker. I immediately booted up and headed to the record store where I bought both Alan Jackson and Jason Isbell’s new CD’s, as well as the new CD by Kasey Chambers. The house smells sonically sweeter already.